H.0011 Hopi basket

This object is a small, circular basket, with a diameter of c.8.5cm. It expands slightly at the top and the base, and has two dark ‘bands’ which go around the top and bottom of the basket. The top band isn’t perfectly round, and has two fibre ties attached to it – these may have been an attempt to repair the basket. Geometric patterns executed in a pale yellow and very dark brown colours feature throughout (Figure 1).

Figure 1. The Hopi basket. Side (a) shows the outside bottom of the basket, (b) shows the inner side, and (c) and (d) show the sides. Author's own photograph (2019).

It is unclear what fibre the basket was made of, but yucca is a possibility if the basket is indeed Hopi (Teiwes 1996, 61). The technique used for the majority of the basket appears to be a kind of twined weave (Florian et al. 1991, 94), and the dark brown colour was produced by dying the fibres before use.

Unlike many objects in UCL’s Ethnographic Collection, there is information about the basket’s provenance. However, the issue is that this basket has three conflicting origins associated with it! The records of the Wellcome Collection (where the basket was housed before coming to UCL in 1931) state that it originates from the Belgian Congo (Figure 2); the basket’s current label states it is Hopi (a Native group from the American South West); and the object’s index card (Figure 3) suggests it could have come from an Eastern American woodland culture. Based on visual characteristics, it was not possible to confirm its origin, but the Belgian Congo seems most likely.

Figure 2. Detail from the Wellcome Collection's Museum Accessions Register, Vol.13. The basket belonged to Lot 1308, which came from the Belgian Congo. Image courtesy of the Wellcome Trust. Available at: https://wellcomelibrary.org/item/b18743699#?c=0&m=0&s=0&cv=4&z=-0.6524%2C-0.0861%2C2.3047%2C1.7222 [Accessed 28th January 2019]

Figure 3. The basket's index card in UCL's Ethnographic Collection. The pencilled writing reads: "This basket has been wrongly attributed to the Hopi who are desert dwellers. It is willow wickerwork, which is common in Eastern American woodland cultures.". Author's own photograph (2019).

Because of its interesting provenance and available documentation, the basket has historic and scientific value. It may have been Daryll Forde, the first  head of UCL’s Ethnographic collection, who changed the provenance of the basket, as he conducted anthropological fieldwork among the Hopi (Fortes 1977, 462). Among Native American and traditional Congolese society, basketry was – and often still is – inalienable from social relations, spirituality, and identity. The indigenous repair on it also suggests that it had significance for its previous owner(s). It is skilfully made, and certainly has aesthetic value too.

Especially considering that it is at least 80-90 years old, the basket is in excellent condition. There are a few areas with surface loss and wear, but there is no active deterioration (Figure 4). There is some dirt on the inside and on some areas on the outside of the basket, but it is unclear whether this is museum dirt or evidence of past use. 

Figure 4. Areas of loss and dirt. Image (a) shows losses on the inside of the basket and (b) shows dirt on its outer side. Author's own photograph (2019).

Bibliography

Fortes, M. 1977. Forde, Cyril Daryll, 1902-1973. Proceedings of the British Academy, 62. Available from: https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/publications/forde-cyril-daryll-1902-1973 

Florian, M.L, Kronkright, D.P. and Norton, R.E. 1990. The Conservation of Artifacts Made from Plant Materials. Marina del Rey, CA: The Getty Conservation Institute.

Teiwes, H. 1996. Hopi Basket Weaving: Artistry in Natural Fibres. Tucson: University of Arizona Press.